Bacteria versus Archaea: Membrane Lipid Differences
This video presents the same text shown beside it, spoken and on screen. It adds nothing the text does not say.
State
Bacterial membranes link fatty acids to glycerol by an ester bond; archaeal membranes link branched phytanyl chains to glycerol by an ether bond.
Show
Some archaeal membranes form a single lipid monolayer rather than the bilayer both bacteria and eukaryotes, otherwise share.
Watch for
This lipid difference, not shape or size, is one of the structural grounds for placing Bacteria and Archaea in separate domains.